Nailable metal floor structure for railway cars



Nov. 9, 1965 Filed 001;. 25, 1961 INVENTOR. uAM R. SHAVER ii-L11- UnitedStates Patent C) 3,216,165 NAILABLE METAL FLOOR STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAYCARS William R. Shaver, Hammond, 1nd, assignor to Pullman Incorporated,Chicago, llL, a corporation of Delaware Filed Oct. 25, 1961, Ser. No.147,518 1 Claim. (Cl. 52-377) The present invention relates to a metalfloor structure for vehicles and more particularly to a metal floo-r forrailway cars.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved metalfloor structure of the type including a plurality of planks assembled asunits in side-by-side relation.

It is a further object to provide an improved metal floor structure forfacilitating the mounting thereof in the railway car in which it isemployed.

It is still a further object to provide a metal floor structure of thetype which includes a plurality of juxtaposed metal channel-like floorplanks fixed together as a unit and in which each of the planks issupported by intermediate support members and in which the outer plankof the floor plank unit is formed with attaching means to facilitate theattachment of the unit to the car.

It is another object to provide a metal floor structure of the typehaving a plurality of juxtaposed metal planks with an improved structurefor forming a nailing groove between said planks.

Further objects and features will hereinafter appear.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a general plan view of a portion of a railway equipped withthe floor structure of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is .a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the lines2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the lines 3-3of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view taken substantially along the lines 4-4 of FIG. 1showing on an enlarged scale how the planks are attached to form a floorplank unit and also how the units are attached to each other; and

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the circled portion of FIG. 1 showing theembossments formed on each of the planks for providing nailing groovesbetween the planks.

Referring now to the figures there is shown a section of a railwayvehicle having side 11 and end walls 12, and an underframe 13 includingside sills 15 and intermediate longitudinal stringers 16. Supportedtransversely on the underframe 13 is a nailable steel floor structure 17which may be the general type covered in US. Patent No. 2,910,016,assigned to the assignee of the present invention.

In accordance with the present invention, the floor structure includes aplurality of juxtaposed planks preassembled as units A in side-by-siderelationship for the full length of the vehicle. In FIG. 1 only onecomplete floor plank unit is shown and only a portion of the adjacentunit A is shown. Each unit A includes end planks 19 and 20 andintermediate planks 21. The outer and intermediate planks 19, 20 and 21of which the planks 20 and 21 are of substantially identical structureincluding a channel-shaped section having a horizontal web portion 22providing the floor surface. The intermediate planks 21 are formed withdepending marginal or side flanges 23 of approximately the same heightand extend continuously for the full length of the planks along therespective opposite side edges thereof. The flanges 23 are formed withvertically extending offset leg portions 24 so as to provide a nailinggroove 25 between adjacent planks for receiving and clinching nailsdriven therein. The end plank 20 is also formed with a depending flange23 along the inner edge of the horizontal web and is similarly providedwith a vertically extending oflset leg portion 26. The outer flange 23may be formed so that its offset leg portion 26 is of somewhat lesserheight than the offset leg portion 24 of the planks 21 for reasons whichwill become apparent hereinafter.

To facilitate the installation of the nailable metal floor units A inthe railway vehicle, the end plank 19 is formed with an outer flange 27similarly formed with a vertically extending oflset leg portion 24 fromthe lower end of which there extends a lateral attaching flange 28. Thelateral attaching flange 28 extends the full length of the end plank 19and is arranged to underlie the offset leg portion 26 of the outerdepending flange 23 of an adjacent floor plank unit A as shown in FIGS.2, 3 and 4.

The planks 19, 20 and 21 are each supported between their respectiveflanges by an intermediate support member 29 which, in the preferredform shown, comprises an angle member having a horizontal leg 30supported directly on the members of the underframe and a vertical leg31 fixed to the underside of the respective horizontal webs 22 of theplanks by way of continuous weld. The vertical leg 31 of the supportmembers 29 is of greater height than the plank flanges 23 so that onlythe lateral attaching flange 28 of the outer flange 27 contacts theunderframe support members 15 and 16.

The spaced relation between the planks to provide the nailing grooves 25is maintained by means of opposing and abutting spacers or embossments32 formed in the flanges 23 at spaced intervals on all of the flanges ofthe planks 19, 20 and 21. As shown the embossments 32 are formed alongthe entire height of each of the flanges and also along the offset legportions 24 and 26. The embossments are equally spaced along the lengthof the planks so that embossments 32 on the adjacent legs of the flangesabut and nest within each other thereby to provide mutual supports foreach of the planks of the unit A and maintain the horizontal webs 22substantially coplanar. Such nesting relationship is achieved byolfsetting the vertically depending portions 24 and 26 in the samehorizontal direction and by contouring the embossments similar to theflanges.

For assembling of the individual planks of a unit A as shown in FIGS. 2and 3, one of the mating or abutting flanges 23 at each of theembossments 32 is provided with a slot 33 which may be in the form of arectangular opening and a weld 34 is applied therein so as to hold theplanks fixed to each other as a unit. It is to be noted that the unitseach include an outer plank 19 having a lateral attaching flange 28,intermediate planks 21 and an outer plank 26 having a shortened offsetleg portion 26.

A plank unit A assembled as above described, is placed on the underframe13 and jacked into position such that the intermediate support members29 are supported on but not fixedly secured on the underframe members 16and 15. To hold the unit A secured to the underframe 13, a weld 35 isapplied along the lateral attaching flange 28 of the end plank 19wherever the flange 28 bears against one of the underframe supportingmem bers, namely, the side sill 15 and intermediate stringers 16.Thereafter, successive units A are placed and jacked into position onthe underframe such that the free end of the outer offset leg portion 26of the outer plank 20 is spaced above the lateral attaching flanges 28and the embossments 32 on the adjacent outer planks 19 and 20 arealigned so that the depending flanges 23 and 27 overlie each other inabutting relation. Advantageously, the adjacent units A are held fixedto each other by a weld 36 applied on the upper surface along the lineof juncture of the embossments 32 as shown in the lefthand portion ofFIG. 4. It is to be observed that the lateral attaching flange 28 isprovided only along one of the outer planks 19 for a unit A so that theeffective Patented Nov. 9, 1965 v support of each of the planks isachieved by the intermediate support member 29 because this lattermember maintains the terminal ends of the depending flanges 23 spacedabove the underframe members.

From the foregoing, it is readily apparent that the floor structure ofthe present invention is constructed and arranged so as to facilitatethe assembly thereof into a raliway car. The provision of a lateralattaching flange on one of the end planks makes it possible to easilyweld the floor plank unit into position and does not require that theintermediate members be fixedly secured thereto. Obviously, because ofthe more or less channel-shaped configuration of the individual planks,access for welding the intermediate support members to the underframe ismore difficult and therefore more time-consuming than when applied alongthe lateral attaching as in the present invention.

What is claimed is:

In a freight vehicle an underframe including a plurality oflongitudinally extending members in combination with a nailable metalfloor structure attached to said underframe, said metal floor structurecomprising a plurality of side-by-side floor units each comprising aplurality of attached identical channel-shaped metal floor planks ofwhich one defines one of each of said units, a single end plank attachedto one of said identical planks at the other end of each of said units,each of said identical planks and said end plank extending transverselyof said longitudinal underframe members, each of said identical planksand said end plank having a horizontal web and depending side flanges,said depending side flanges each having complementary abuttingembossments spaced along the length thereof providing nailing groovesbetween said embossments, one of said depending side flanges of said endplank abutting one of said depending side flanges of an adjacentidentical plank and being identical to the other of said adjacentidentical plank depending side flanges which is remote from saidabutting side flange, said other depending side flange of said end plankremote from said abutting side flange defining the outer end of eachfloor unit and having a lateral attaching flange integral therewith andextending outwardly from said unit and contacting said longitudinalsupport members, each of said planks having an identical intermediatesupporting member secured at one end to the underside thereof betweensaid depending flanges and the other end detachably resting on saidlongitudinal underframe members and supporting said planks there on,said intermediate support member being of greater height than the heightof said depending flanges of said identical planks, means applied fromabove said longitudinal members fixedly attaching said floor units tosaid underframe where said lateral attaching flange contacts saidunderframe members to provide the sole attaching means of each of saidunits to each of said underframe members, said units being arranged insideby-side relationship with said lateral attaching flange along saidend plank of one of said units underlying in spaced relationship thefree end of the outer downwardly depending flange of an identical plankat the one end of an adjacent unit, and means fixedly securing adjacentplanks of said units and an end plank of one unit to an adjacentidentical plank of an adjacent unit at said embossments.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,147,965 2/39Clauss 5'2-377 2,250,253 7/41 Bowen 52-377 2,410,191 10/46 West 52532,454,604 11/48 Heim 52377 2,457,086 1'2/48 Mitchell et al 52-3772,852,112 9/58 Shay 52377 2,900,055 8/59 Shaver 52377 2,910,016 10/59Faverty et al. 52582 3,026,821 3/62 Oakley 52489 X 3,102,613 9/63Johnston 422 X FOREIGN PATENTS 613,896 2/61 Canada.

RICHARD W. COOKE, 111., Primary Examiner.

JOEL REZNEK, Examiner.

